This invention relates generally to radar systems and more particularly to radar systems adapted to track energy reflected by different scattering points of an object.
As is known in the art, a radar system includes a transmitter and antenna for transmitting and directing radar energy towards an object. The object reflects portions of the transmitted energy. A portion of the reflected energy is received by the antenna and is directed to a receiver of the radar system. In response to the received energy, the receiver produces signals to enable the radar system to track the object. The tracking signals generally track the centroid of the target's reflected energy. Thus, for example, where the radar system is carried by a missile to intercept an incoming target, the tracking signals are fed to both the antenna and to the missile's guidance system to direct the missile toward the centroid of the target's reflected energy. In some applications, however, it is necessary to track energy from a number of different scattering points on the target.